Direct support professional vs direct care provider

The differences between direct support professionals and direct care providers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a direct support professional has an average salary of $32,077, which is higher than the $29,470 average annual salary of a direct care provider.

The top three skills for a direct support professional include direct support, developmental disabilities and autism. The most important skills for a direct care provider are CPR, developmental disabilities, and mental health.

Direct support professional vs direct care provider overview

	Direct Support Professional	Direct Care Provider
Yearly salary	$32,077	$29,470
Hourly rate	$15.42	$14.17
Growth rate	36%	36%
Number of jobs	142,034	117,168
Job satisfaction	4	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	-	-

What does a direct support professional do?

Direct support professionals are responsible for taking care of patients with physical or mental limitations. They do a variety of tasks for their patients, such as doing household chores, running errands for them, cooking for them, feeding them, bathing and dressing them, and helping them with their medication, among others. They also provide their patients with companionship, accompanying their patients to appointments, providing emotional support, and being with their patients for the most part of the day. They should be familiar with their patients' prescribed medicines, meal plans, therapy schedules, and other items related to the betterment of the patients' condition. Direct support professionals help the patients overcome their challenges and assist them in acclimating themselves with their current environment.

What does a direct care provider do?

A Direct Care Worker specializes in providing care and assistance to patients, typically to the elderly. Their responsibilities include preparing and feeding meals, administering medication and other treatments, and monitoring their conditions, updating the physician or the patients' families regularly. They must also assist patients in various hygienic tasks such as bathing, dressing, brushing teeth, or going to the toilet. There are instances when Direct Care Workers must perform various household tasks such as laundry, washing the dishes, shopping for groceries, and running errands as needed.

Direct support professional vs direct care provider salary

Direct support professionals and direct care providers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Direct Support Professional	Direct Care Provider
Average salary	$32,077	$29,470
Salary range	Between $18,000 And $54,000	Between $20,000 And $42,000
Highest paying City	Santa Clara, CA	Olympia, WA
Highest paying state	California	Alaska
Best paying company	Meta	Washington State University
Best paying industry	Government	Health Care

Differences between direct support professional and direct care provider education

There are a few differences between a direct support professional and a direct care provider in terms of educational background:

	Direct Support Professional	Direct Care Provider
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 36%
Most common major	Psychology	Psychology
Most common college	-	-

Direct support professional vs direct care provider demographics

Here are the differences between direct support professionals' and direct care providers' demographics:

	Direct Support Professional	Direct Care Provider
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6%	Male, 23.6% Female, 76.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 8.3% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 7.8% White, 61.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between direct support professional and direct care provider duties and responsibilities

Direct support professional example responsibilities.

Work with adults who have disabilities to help manage everyday tasks such as laundry, cooking, preparing groceries, etc.
Provide care to adults with intellectual & developmental disabilities while administering their medication via AMAP certification
Support the development of individuals with autism by promoting community involvement and performing exercises to strengthen their cognitive and social skills.
Assist with toileting, including urinals.
Maintain medical records according to all HIPPA guidelines.
Assist coordinator to train new DCW on assign shift.

Direct care provider example responsibilities.

Require certification in MANDT and CPR.
Coach and train clients to improve their daily living (ADL), social interaction and job skills.
Provide instruction and assist the consumers with active daily living (ADL) skills such as cooking, bathing, dressing.
Provide caring and companionship to elderly and developmentally disable consumers and provide primary resident care and assistance with daily living activities.
Facilitate exercise, vocational, arts-n-crafts, and daily living skills groups for consumers with DD.

Direct support professional vs direct care provider skills

Common direct support professional skills

Direct Support, 19%
Developmental Disabilities, 12%
Autism, 9%
Direct Care, 7%
DSP, 7%
Mental Health, 6%

Common direct care provider skills

CPR, 24%
Developmental Disabilities, 23%
Mental Health, 5%
Direct Care, 4%
Intellectual Disabilities, 4%
Home Health, 4%

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Personal Care and Attendants Industry
Direct Support Professional
Direct Support Professional vs Direct Care Provider

Updated January 8, 2025

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